[South Africa] Argus opens new Africa office in Cape Town

International commodity price reporting agency Argus continues to expand its global operations, opening a new office in Cape Town, South Africa, this month.

The African energy sector is experiencing dramatic change. International asset holders are no longer the sole producers of oil and gas as more local participants add to diversity of supply.

And downstream marketing and trading companies are entering and investing in the region, heightening competition and increasingly allowing prices to move according to market forces.

Indigenous stakeholders are playing a more active role in a supply chain that is becoming increasingly de-integrated, and demand for market pricing, data, news and analysis is growing in this dynamic market.

Argus will use its Cape Town office to further develop its coverage of regional markets across Africa and to continue to bring transparency to the various sectors covered by its reports.

The opening of an office in Cape Town, the "Mother City" of South Africa, underscores Argus' long-standing commitment to the continent.

Argus coal prices have long been the standard index for South African exports, and in recent years Argus has launched the Argus West Africa Oil service covering less transparent crude oil and delivered refined products markets, as well as adding new assessments to existing reports, including South African jet fuel prices and a raft of new African bitumen assessments.

Argus Media chairman and chief executive Adrian Binks said: "Argus is delighted to gain this new foothold in the rapidly growing African market. The opening of our Cape Town office will allow us to provide on-the-ground information to African companies and their international trading partners."